http://www.sakagaze.blogspot.com is the blog address for some of the cool and not so cool observations by Anindo Sen, a passionate Kolkatan. Kolkata is likely to feature prominently on this blog, just as it is likely to feature the personal preferences - as far as films, books or music or other finer aspects of life are concerned.

Today being World AIDS Day, I am going to talk about a brilliant bouquet of short films that I have had the privilege to see on UTV W...

Sunday, June 17, 2012

'Rock of Ages' rocks!!!

Rock of Ages is over-the-top, it's the good old musical.
It has an almost brought-back-from-the-dead feel.
I said 'almost', because it is actually lovable - in a campy way.
It gives us a star to root for - Diego Bonita.
Diego Bonita and Julianne Hough make a cute fresh lead pair.
Russell Brand displays his British wackiness once again.
And, with Alec Baldwin, Brand displays a quirky chemistry.
The story - of aspiring rockers - is as old as the history of musicals.
The girl-meets-boy-in-the-big-bad-City-of-Angels tale is paper-thin.
However, the secondary characters have a lot of pizzazz.
The deliciously funny, though predictable, situations make us chuckle.
Glam rock tracks, with anthem status, make us groove.
And the icing on the cake is Tom Cruise himself.
Cruise is a topping that is worth watching the movie for.
Cruise buffs have a reason to rejoice; others: witness a revelation.
Mary J. Blige shines too, as the owner of a night club.
Paul Giamatti plays a manipulative manager called, ahem ahem, Paul.
Despite the silliness, and some ham-acts, the film worked for me.
The songs - the cover versions plus the featured classics - are heavenly.
For a popcorn munching good time at the theaters,Rock of Ages is recommended viewing.

10 comments:

Fabulous! Tom Cruise just ruled the screen with his scenes! Right from his intro act to the crooning bits, he showed his critics that he can go campy and make us chuckle in delight.Television's Diego Bonita impressed me as well. The songs were picture perfect for me. Ensuring a whale of a time, watching and singing along...... helped by the subtitles...... hahaha.

The film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical set in the eighties is actually rather lame (the screenplay doesn't justify the need for the filmed version at all unlike many other successful filmed musicals), but it wins our hearts through its powerful soundtrack and also by virtue of the lovable acts - sometimes comical, sometimes zany, and sometimes corny.

It might be accused for having a lame script, but the movie is a pure delight for those who want to go back to the late eighties and relive the delight of glam rock. Tom Cruise is like the showstopper for this parade of a film showcasing the glitz, blitz, and fizz, warts and all - albeit in a sugary manner. Diego Bonita is destined for stardom, and the others in the cast too haven't fared badly.

I am aware that the film has been panned by many. Yet, I kinda loved the film. It celebrates a non-existent innocence despite celebrating the kinky glamour of rock from a time that I had not much idea about. I loved Tom Cruise as well as all the principal players. I just felt that Catherine Zeta-Jones wasn't into her act with all heart and soul. The songs featured in the film are simply fabulous.

A rocking soundtrack, peppered with cool cover versions and some classic glam rock originals, and a stellar cast that generates more of campy fun than giving us involving moments (who bothers the flimsy storyline?) and the result is a super-fun movie! I LOVED 'Rock of Ages', man!!!!!